San Benito girls draw No. 1 Menlo-Atherton in quarterfinals
“One game at a time. One at a time and that’s how we’re going to take it.”
Those were the words of San Benito girls basketball head coach Al Rowe after his team’s emotional victory over Alisal on Wednesday. The Haybalers would do well to heed the advice of their coach as it would be folly for them to overlook the task in front of them.
After surviving 44-39 in an overtime thriller against No. 8 Alisal in the first round of the Central Coast Section Division I playoffs, No. 9 San Benito advanced to face No. 1 Menlo-Atherton in the quarterfinals tonight at Milpitas High.
Drawing the top seed so early in the tournament was unfortunate for the ‘Balers, but following the dramatic finish against the Trojans, San Benito players spoke of the benefit of gaining that first win.
“It gives us a lot of momentum going forward,” said ‘Balers forward Ashley Patton. “To finally pull it out and get a big win, it gets us ready for the next one.”
Despite leading host Alisal from the opening tip, building up a 12-point lead with six minutes left in the game, San Benito again saw its hard work begin to disappear before its own eyes as the Trojans mounted a late comeback. A pair of Alisal free throws with two seconds left sent the game into overtime, but the ‘Balers regrouped to eventually dispatch the Trojans.
The Haybalers (13-14) know they can’t afford a similar let-down against Menlo-Atherton and highlighted their fourth-quarter woes as the chief concern they need to improve.
“We’ve got to save our energy for the fourth,” said freshman guard Vanessa Farias. “We need to try to get out to the lead early and when the fourth quarter comes, we need to keep it up. Don’t give up. We need to give it all we have.”
Menlo-Atherton (20-6) enjoyed a first-round bye and heads into tonight’s contest well-rested. The Bears suffered a 54-50 loss to Burlingame in their regular season finale, but enjoyed quite a strong run before that contest. Menlo-Atherton had won seven in-a-row and nine of its last 10 games before the defeat, allowing its opponent to score more than 43 points just twice in the streak.
San Benito’s coaching staff highlighted the contrasting styles of the ‘Balers and Bears as a game within the game. While the ‘Balers use their athleticism to keep up the pace at both ends of the floor, Menlo-Atherton has a history of winning with its half-court offense that utilizes multiple scoring options.
Rowe hopes his ‘Balers impose their will on the Bears early and then protect their lead.
“We’re a high-speed team and they don’t like that,” said the San Benito coach. “We’re going to try to keep them out of their half-court offense. [But] they’re a good team. They’re a very good team.”
After bowing out of the CCS playoffs to the eventual champions the past two seasons, San Benito must now tackle the top seed.
But while leaving the court at Alisal, Rowe spoke of his belief that a big win can have a lasting effect.
“This is just going to get them up to the next level,” said Rowe.
